Not an Easy Read for “Normal” “Colored” People: Conversations on Shange’s and Rooney’s Literatures of Sexual Citizenship

Abstract

This chapter examines Ntozake Shange’s 1976 choreopoem for colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf and Sally Rooney’s novel Normal People, articulating their shared potential to open spaces for readers to consider reproductive justice goals. Specifically, we use the lens of reproductive justice to think together about these works in light of the movement’s efforts to advocate for public commitments in supporting sexual citizenship and sovereignty, especially among young people. Through this mash-up of analysis and dialogue, we consider two texts that are disparate in their focus, form, and historical situatedness but that have both garnered considerable public uptake. We find in both works provocative possibilities for centering and taking seriously young people as sexual beings, troubling problematic and differential notions of sexual innocence, and exploring thorny topics such as consent. Our personal reflections and experiences contribute to this analysis as we imagine how artists, teachers, and activists (and those who hold more than one of these roles at once) can cultivate more public engagements around topics of sexuality and desire in ways inspired by these texts and aligned with reproductive justice goals of human rights, safety, and dignity for all.